Goodbye Ning!

Yes, the Lord provided a job for my roommate Ning. She moved this week to Buriram, another city in Isaan about 4 hours away, where she will teach English at a University.

This past weekend Ning packed up her things and her parents hosted a "ngaan liang song" (goodbye party) . The party was quite early in the morning. The woman started cooking by 5 am and most people arrived by 7 am. A big part of the goodbye party was a Thai-Buddhist ceremony called "sukkhwan". In Buddhism the khwan might be defined as the life essence of a person. It has the potential to be easily scared away from someone. So during certain life events, a sukkhwan ceremony takes place where the khwan can be recalled to make sure the person is whole. The way khwan is recalled is by tying white strings around a person's wrists while giving an oral blessing.

For Isaan christians the sukkhwan ceremony is a big issue. Some are very opposed to it and others believe that this important cultural event can be used when it is reinterpreted with christian meaning (used as a way of blessing someone from God). Ning was wrestling with this issue herself. She expressed to her mom that she didn't need the strings because God is the one who makes her whole and takes care of her. She decided to show grace to her family and accept the strings as merely a blessing from her relatives and neighbors and cut them off later.

If you want to know more about the sukkhwan there is a good article at this link:
www.thaicov.org/resources/documents/string_tying.html

Khao Lak...Then and Now...

Earlier this week, I returned from an 8 day trip down to Southern Thailand. My roommate from 3 years ago is still living down in the town of Khao Lak, so I wanted to visit her and the area before she is due to leave.

I lived in Khao Lak for a little over 2 months in early 2005 shortly after the tsunami hit that region. I helped a group committed to building houses in the village of Bang Sak. It was great to be able to return and see the changes that have taken place. In many ways the town and villages look very different. A large number of resorts have been built or rebuilt and it has become a place for tourists once again. Even though there are a lot of changes, I was surprised that there are still some places virtually untouched. One resort I went to looked as if the tsunami just occured...people's belongings, office papers, restaurant kitchen equipment all strewn about, covered with sand and, now, overgrown vines too.
The ocean on this side of Thailand is so gorgeous! God blessed me with some great weather, considering it is monsoon season now. The beach was a lot more cleaned up than I remember. As I walked along, I noticed several memorial sites set up, like the one in this picture. In the midst of change, many people are still grieving the losses of that life-changing and history-changing day.
I also was able to go up to the Bang Sak village a couple days. I saw some familiar faces and the final building project will be nearing an end in a few months. One special treat was being able to visit a family that I knew almost 15 years ago in Bible School. They believe the Lord has led them to work in this village and region and I sat in on a weekly cell group that they have. It is so neat to see how the Lord has orchestrated His work in this area...wanting His Church built there, not just houses.

Thanks For Visiting !

Hi everyone, welcome to the first day of my blog : ) Make sure you look at the side bar to see pictures, contact and partnership information, and some fun miscellaneous stuff. Don't forget to play a round of Pacman before you leave!